Six Nations Recap: World Cup Hangover, New Tactics And A Second Half Frenzy

Rugby’s greatest annual international rugby championship returned to our screens on a perfect Friday evening in Marseille. 

Starting the tournament with a bang, reigning champions Ireland dismissed their hosts with a record 38 – 17 victory. Sending a clear signal that the men in green had turned the chapter on their gut-wrenching Rugby World Cup quarterfinal exit whilst Les Bleus looked to still have their minds on the cold October evening in Paris. 

Building on the platform that had been laid the evening before, England travelled to Rome to face a vastly improved Italian side. In what would prove to be a nip-and-tuck affair, Steve Borthwick’s charges would keep their unbeaten streak against the Azzurri alive by the slenderest of margins with a 27 – 24 victory. In reality, England had the fixture sewn up, but a late try and, with it, a bonus point for Italy was just a reward for their endeavour as they scored three truly sublime tries. 

Closing out the weekend’s action was a helter-skelter affair in Cardiff in which Scotland appeared to have the result sewn up by the 43^rd minute as they led 27 –  0. Being resigned to defeat is never something a Warren Gatland-coached side can be accused of and, on a wider scale, is not the cloth from which the Welsh are cut. Instead, a rampant charge of 26 unanswered points had the Dragons on the verge of an all-time comeback. In the end, Scotland would hold on and finish the stronger of the two sides as Duhan van der Merwe was just about denied his third try due to being held up.

As the focus begins to turn towards round two of the 2024 Guinness Six Nations, here are five key takeaways from the opening round. 

Ireland’s Journey Is Far From Complete 

For all the talk of a World Cup choke, this Ireland team look more like a side mid their journey than one who peaked too soon. There can be no getting away from the fact that their four-point loss to the All Blacks in the quarterfinal of Rugby World Cup 2023 was bitterly disappointing, but if the past three years are anything to go by, this is just the beginning for Andy Farrell’s team. In a mirror reflection of the All Blacks of 2007, who promised so much only to see their campaign come crumbling down in the quarterfinal, this team is built around a squad of players young enough to be at their peak in 2027. Driving the team forward are a bunch of players who, despite accomplishing significant milestones today, have the capacity to build on what has gone before them. Front and centre are the spine of the squad Dan Sheehan (25), Ronan Kelleher (26), Andrew Porter (28), Tom O’Toole (25), Joe McCarthy (22), James Ryan (27), Caelen Doris (25), Jack Crowley (24), Mack Hansen (25) and Hugo Keenan (27) are just a handful of players who will be in their prime in four year’s time. Throw into the mix several of the veteran players (Tadhg Furlong, Tadhg Beirne, Garry Ringrose, etc) and the otherworldly young talent coming through (Sam…